Honky ‘Châtteau’: The Bitch is Back

elton john

In case you haven’t heard by now, Elton John returns to Chattanooga on March 23 for his second concert in less than three years at The Roundhouse. Captain Fantastic last visited the Scenic City for a sold-out show in November 2010, featuring Leon Russell—an influential musician who had fallen on tough times, but to whom Elton owed much in terms of piano style and inspiration—in support of their collaboration, “The Union,” released that year. This time around, it’s the 40th anniversary of Elton’s classic “Rocket Man (I Think It’s Going to Be a Long, Long Time),” a song from his 1972 album, “Honky Château”—one of his finest—that echoed David Bowie’s “Space Oddity,” from an era that reflected on NASA’s increasingly ordinary missions beyond the Earth’s atmosphere.

The forthcoming concert—an obvious “greatest hits” package (but do we want much else?)—features just Elton and his band and the arena is now all but sold out, with only upper level seats and a few single seats scattered elsewhere available at press time. With reasonably priced tickets—$37, $77 and $137, from floor to mid- and upper-levels, respectively—ticket resellers were quick (as usual), buying up huge blocks and offering them up (even before the show sold out) at two or three times the top price of even the highest-priced seats. Elton, 65, a legend who lives part-time in Atlanta, will not tour forever and the prices match their expectations. We suppose.

The Pulse will feature an examination of Elton’s career, focusing on those early “Rocket Man” years the week before the show.